U.S. stocks surged near the closing bell, with the S&P 500 index jumping over 1% on Tuesday.
The Dow edged up 0.74% to 39,057.10 while the NASDAQ climbed 1.41% to 16,245.83. The S&P 500 also saw gains, rising 1.10% to 5,174.28.
Sector Performance Overview
Information technology shares led the charge, surging by 2.1% on Tuesday.
Meanwhile, utilities stocks took a hit, dropping by 1.1%.
Headline Highlights
February witnessed the U.S. consumer price index surpassing expectations with a rise of 3.2% year-over-year, outpacing both the previous and anticipated 3.1%. Additionally, the monthly core CPI surged by 0.4%, echoing January’s figures and beating the projected 0.3% increase.
Winners in Equities Trading
ClearOne, Inc. saw its shares skyrocket by 114% to $1.94 post the announcement of a special one-time cash dividend.
Additionally, Regulus Therapeutics Inc. witnessed a 72% surge to $2.3799 following positive topline results from its Phase 1b MAD study of RGLS8429 for ADPKD treatment, coupled with a successful $100 million private placement of equity.
Ranpak Holdings Corp. also enjoyed a 51% climb to $6.60 after an impressive fourth-quarter revenue report, issuing favorable FY24 guidance, while being backed by Baird’s Outperform rating and a raised price target.
Losers in Equities Trading
BYND Cannasoft Enterprises Inc. witnessed a steep 71% decline to $0.0295 post pricing a $7.0 million underwritten public offering.
Conversely, shares of Blade Air Mobility, Inc. plunged 29% to $2.8350 after reporting disappointing fourth-quarter revenue figures and issuing underwhelming FY24 revenue guidance.
Caribou Biosciences, Inc. also struggled, plummeting 24% to $5.49 following worse-than-expected fourth-quarter financial results.
Commodity Outlook
Oil experienced a 0.4% decline to $77.66, gold stumbled by 1.3% to $2,159.60, silver dipped 1.7% to $24.295, and copper fell 0.1% to $3.9260 on Tuesday.
European Markets Update
European shares rallied, with the STOXX 600 in the eurozone rising by 1%, FTSE 100 in London up 1.02%, IBEX 35 Index in Spain rising 0.61%, Germany’s DAX soaring 1.23%, French CAC 40 climbing 0.84%, and Italy’s FTSE MIB Index gaining 1.31%.
German consumer price inflation stood at 2.5% year-over-year in February, while the UK’s unemployment rate increased to 3.9%, and regular pay (excluding bonuses) rose by 6.1% year-over-year to GBP 627 per week in the three months leading to January.
Asia Pacific Markets Recap
Asian markets displayed mixed performances on Tuesday, with Japan’s Nikkei 225 dropping 0.06%, Hong Kong’s Hang Seng Index soaring 3.05%, China’s Shanghai Composite Index declining 0.41%, and India’s S&P BSE Sensex edging up by 0.23%.
India witnessed a 9.5% year-over-year increase in total passenger vehicle sales in February, while Japan reported a 0.6% rise in producer prices year-over-year in February, with a decline in the business survey index of large manufacturing firms to -6.7% in the first quarter.
Economic Indicators
The NFIB Small Business Optimism Index dipped to 89.4 in February from 89.9 in January.
Inflation rose to 3.2% year-over-year in February 2024, surpassing both prior and expected rates, with the monthly core CPI increasing by 0.4% compared to January, exceeding the estimated 0.3% rise.
